Full Review Of The Glock 43x

The concealed carry market has always been quite lucrative for firearm manufacturers in the US and with the development and release of high-capacity micro 9mm pistols like the Sig p365 in the past few years, they have become even more popular.

Glock is one of the most popular firearm manufacturers in the world, and its pistols are known to be super reliable. Glocks are used by law enforcement and militaries all over the world, and they have released some incredible pistols for the civilian market as well. One of these pistols, the Glock 43X, was released as a direct competitor to the Sig P365 and other similar Micro 9mm pistols of the time.

What is the Glock 43x designed for?

The Glock 43x was designed specifically for concealed carry. It was an improvement over the original Glock 43 concealed carry pistol, with a larger capacity, and the same thin profile was maintained to allow for easier concealability. The 43x also has a larger frame than most concealed carry competitors, and therefore, is very controllable.

Features and design:

The Glock 43x follows the same design pattern as most other Glocks. It is a striker-fired pistol, with a polymer frame, with a steel slide. The size of the frame is quite bigger than most competitors and is the same height as the Glock19. This can slightly decrease the pistol concealability, however, the thin profile does compensate for the longer frame to some extent. The Glock 43x is less than an inch thick, and the longer grip allows you to get all three fingers on it, for a more comfortable shooting experience.

The Glock 43x has a 10-round magazine, which seems quite subpar when you consider that the pistol has a grip as long as the G19. This is because the Glock 43x used a single stack magazine with a thin grip. However, competitive pistols like Sig P365 and Springfield Hellcat can fit the same number of rounds in a smaller grip, with the same thickness, because the Glock 43x uses a polymer-lined metal magazine, which has very thick walls. Aftermarket companies like shield arms have designed metal frame magazines for the G43. These magazines have thinner walls and therefore, can fit up to 15 rounds of 9mm in a flush-fitting magazine.

Ergonomics:

The Glock 43x is a very ergonomic pistol because of the long slim grip. The grip does not have replaceable backstraps, however, its design is still very comfortable for most hands. The front of the grip has a smooth design, with no finger grooves, like the Gen 5 Glocks.

Instead of a long beavertail, the pistol has a little nub on top of the tang, which makes for a very comfortable and controllable grip. The texturing on the grip isn't as aggressive as most Glock pistols, and though it is great with dry hands, when your hands get sweaty, the grip feels a little loose.

Sights:

The Glock 43x comes with multiple types of sights, however, the basic pistol comes with the standard Glock plastic sights, which are decent, and get the job done, but aren't anything to write home about. The good thing is that the basic sights don't come with a surcharge, and they can be easily replaced with any aftermarket Glock sights that you prefer.

Moreover, the Glock 43x MOS is also available now, however, the drawback is that it is only compatible with Shield RMSC micro red dot. There are some companies that do milling jobs on Glock 43x slides to make them compatible with any micro red dot, however, this can be a little expensive and time-consuming.

Still, for simple defensive use, and concealed carry, the stock sights are more than enough. They, allow you to quickly get a sight picture, especially if you have practiced with them, and because of the low profile, they won't snag on anything when you draw the pistol

Controls:

Starting with the safety, the Glock 43x, like all other Glock pistols, only has an external trigger safety. It is quite efficient and keeps the pistol from going off when it is dropped. The Glock 43x also has an internal firing pin safety and drop safety

Movin on, the magazine release is located on the left side of the pistol and it can be switched to the right side for left-handed shooters. The slide release is made of plastic, like other stock Glocks, and they work really well, however, if you intend on regularly using the Shield Arms metal magazine for higher capacity, you should consider getting a metal aftermarket magazine release.

The slide stop/release is also located on the left side of the frame. It is not ambidextrous and can be difficult to reach for left-handed shooters. However, if you are right-handed, you can easily engage it with your thumb.

Trigger:

The trigger on the Glock 43x is quite simple and straightforward, like any other Glock. However, Glocks generally have a good trigger. Stock triggers are usually about 5.5 lbs, and have a crisp break and quick reset. When you go to pull the trigger, you have a little take-up, and then you hit a definite wall. After this, the trigger break is quite smooth. Moreover, there are tons of aftermarket trigger options if you want to replace your trigger with a lighter one.

Final thoughts:

So, overall, the Glock 43x is a really good concealed carry pistol. Like any other Glock, it is insanely reliable like all Glock pistols and has a high capacity as well. It is also very comfortable to shoot and is one of the best-concealed carry 9mm pistols on the market.